Andrew Forrest to make Australian philanthropic history with huge donation

By Mark Kenny, national affairs editor

Mining and business billionaire Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest will give away a huge chunk of his personal wealth in the largest philanthropic donation by a living person in Australian history.

The WA-based Fortescue Metals Group chairman and his wife, Nicola, will announce the colossal suite of donations alongside Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten at an event on Monday. It is expected to dwarf any past pledges by high-net-worth Australians and corporations.

The money will be dedicated to a variety of social and scientific causes including Indigenous disadvantage, cultural and arts facilities in regional Australia, and an ambitious plan to gain the upper hand over cancer with a major injection of research funding aiming to make most cancers treatable as chronic diseases rather than terminal.

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There will be a particular focus on early childhood education, with the Forrests impressed by recent research developments in the field.

Andrew Forrest will unveil details of the donation at an event with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten.Credit:Getty Images

While the precise quantum of the donation is being tightly held for the announcement itself, the final figure is tipped to extend into the hundreds of millions of dollars.

Mr Forrest would not be drawn on that, confirming only that it constituted "a very significant proportion of our earnings".

Asked why the couple was making the donation now and of such size, he said, "Quite simply, we can".

"Nicola and I have been very fortunate to build up a couple of businesses from scratch ... we decided that if we ever got to the point where we could afford to, we would put that wealth to the highest social use."

Mr Forrest believes the involvement of the nation's two political leaders "signals the commitment of the public and private sectors to work together in supporting initiatives to create healthier and more educated citizens, boost employment, and facilitate thriving, robust communities".

Hollywood star Russell Crowe and Australian screen legend Jack Thompson will be among a large contingent of national and international guests at the event, which will include leading international cancer specialists who have flown in from around the globe, in a sign of just how significant the medical research component will be.

The donation includes substantial new grants aiming to foster and then turbocharge international collaborative cancer research. The Forrests are convinced the new money can drive the research breakthroughs that will take cancer from the killer it often is, to "non-fatal" status.

It is envisaged that it could then be improved to the degree that it is "no longer a life-debilitating disease".

"We really want to encourage institutions to specialise in cancer research and to get them the capital they need in order to do so," he said.

Fairfax Media understands that in addition to funds for cancer research and treatment, there will be money to help rebuild regional communities ravaged by economic changes, along with funds to enrich country life through renewed arts and cultural programs.

Education is a significant element also with funds to "draw the research strings together".

Educational scholarships, already under way in Western Australia, will extend nationally and then internationally.

The Forrests had already donated $65 million to universities in Perth.

They believe the scale and distribution of this donation will act as the critical catalyst unlocking other private and public investments, opening up possibilities for greater international coordination.

While there have been a number of significant donations in Australia, the biggest have tended to come from deceased estates, or from large corporations.

While private heath magnate, the late Paul Ramsay, bequeathed some $3 billion to the Ramsay Foundation to address health, education and disadvantage, Mr Forrest's generosity marks his donations out as the largest by a living person in Australia.

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Among other donations in recent years are $200 million to the National Philanthropic Fund from Crown Resorts and the Packer family, and $100 million from Westpac to the Westpac Bicentennial Foundation.

Last year, the Australian National University received $100 million from a former student and his wife, Graham Tuckwell and his wife Louise Tuckwell for student accommodation.